Junior Rasmussen
Audrey Meadows, born Audrey Cotter in 1922 in China, was an American television actress best remembered for her role as Alice Kramden in The Honeymooners. She joined the cast of The Honeymooners in 1952, replacing Pert Kelton as the iconic Alice Kramden, the testy bus driver's wife. Meadows' portrayal of the character, opposite Jackie Gleason, made her one of the most memorable characters in television comedy.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Audrey Meadows |
| Role | Alice Kramden |
| Year joined The Honeymooners | 1955 |
| Year The Honeymooners ended | 1956 |
| Notable for | Being the only member of the cast to earn residual royalties after the "Classic 39" episodes |
| Awards | Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series |
| Other shows | Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Jackie Gleason Show, Too Close for Comfort, Uncle Buck |
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What You'll Learn
Audrey Meadows replaced Pert Kelton as Alice Kramden
Pert Kelton was the original actress to play Alice Kramden in The Honeymooners comedy sketches on the DuMont Television Network's Cavalcade of Stars. Jackie Gleason starred as her husband Ralph Kramden, and Art Carney played their upstairs neighbour, Ed Norton. Elaine Stritch played Trixie, the burlesque dancer wife of Norton, for one sketch before being replaced by Joyce Randolph. Kelton appeared in the original sketches, which were generally shorter than the later one-season half-hour series episodes and 1960s hour-long musical versions.
Kelton was dropped from her role when the sketch idea moved to CBS, with the official reason given being that she was suffering from a heart problem and was unable to continue. However, it has also been suggested that she was blacklisted from Hollywood due to her alleged communist affiliations, and only remained on Cavalcade of Stars at the urging of Gleason.
Meadows was born Audrey Cotter in New York City in 1922 and was the younger sister of Hollywood leading lady Jayne Meadows. She attended high school at the Barrington School for Girls in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. After high school, she sang in the Broadway musical Top Banana before becoming a regular on television in The Bob and Ray Show.
Meadows was the only member of the Honeymooners cast to earn residual royalties after the "Classic 39" episodes of the show from 1955 to 1956 started airing in reruns. Her brother Edward, a lawyer, had inserted a clause into her original contract, whereby she would be paid if the shows were re-broadcast, thus earning her millions of dollars. For her work on the show, Meadows was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.
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She was initially rejected for the role for being too chic and pretty
Audrey Meadows, born Audrey Cotter, portrayed the iconic role of Alice Kramden, Ralph's wife, in the 1950s American television comedy The Honeymooners. She was the younger sister of Hollywood actress Jayne Meadows.
Meadows was initially rejected for the role of Alice Kramden because she was deemed "too chic and pretty" by Jackie Gleason, her co-star in the show. However, Meadows was determined to land the part, so she hired a photographer to capture her in a different light. She dressed down, wearing frumpy clothes, no makeup, and styling her hair in a plain manner. She even adopted a world-weary attitude for the photos. She sent these photos to Gleason, who, not recognizing her, told his producers that they had found their "Alice". When Gleason realized it was indeed Meadows, he admired her determination and hired her.
Meadows reprised her role as Alice several times, including on other shows such as The Steve Allen Show and The Jack Benny Program. She became so associated with the character that she was invited to play Alice in a man-on-the-street interview and a parody sketch. Meadows also earned four Primetime Emmy nominations for her television work, winning one for The Jackie Gleason Show.
In addition to her successful acting career, Meadows served as the director of the First National Bank of Denver for 11 years, becoming the first woman to hold the position. She was also an advisory director of Continental Airlines from 1961 to 1981, where she played a role in various marketing programs.
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She earned millions from residual royalties
Audrey Meadows, the actor who portrayed Alice Kramden on The Honeymooners, is considered one of the first actors to receive residual payments for her time. She is believed to be the only cast member who earned residuals for reruns, including the show's star, Jackie Gleason. Meadows' residuals had little to do with her star power and more with the forethought of her brother, Edward, an attorney. When Meadows was working out her contract with CBS, her brother advised her to have a residual clause written into the paperwork because he thought reruns of the show would eventually be valuable. He was right. Meadows was the only member of the Honeymooners cast to earn residual royalties after the "Classic 39" episodes of the show from 1955 to 1956 started airing in reruns.
Meadows' brother, a lawyer, had inserted a clause into her original contract that ensured she would be paid if the shows were re-broadcast, earning her millions of dollars. When the "Classic 39" episodes of the show from 1955 to 1956 started airing in reruns, Meadows became the only cast member to earn residual royalties. These residual payments ended up earning Meadows far more money than she made for appearing on the show in the first place. While exact amounts are hard to determine, it is believed that Meadows made around $2,000 per week for her time on the series.
Meadows portrayed the deadpan housewife Alice Kramden on the 1950s American television comedy The Honeymooners. She replaced Pert Kelton as the most famous and best-loved "Alice Kramden". When she first auditioned for the part, Jackie Gleason turned her down because he said she was too pretty to be believable as Ralph's wife. Determined to get the part, she hired a photographer to take pictures of herself in frumpy clothes and no makeup, looking much plainer. She sent these photos to Gleason, who, not recognizing her, told his producers that she was "Alice" and to find her. When he found out it was indeed Meadows, he said that any actress that determined to get the part deserved it, and he hired her. The character of Alice became more associated with Meadows than with the other actresses who played her, and she reprised her role as Alice on other shows as well.
In addition to her work on The Honeymooners, Meadows also appeared in films such as That Touch of Mink (1962) and Take Her, She's Mine (1963). She was the live-action model for the cartoon character Wilma Flintstone and portrayed Ted Knight's mother-in-law in the 1980s sitcom Too Close for Comfort (1980). She earned four Primetime Emmy nominations for her television work, winning one for The Jackie Gleason Show.
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She was the only cast member to earn residual royalties
Audrey Meadows, the actor who portrayed Alice Kramden on The Honeymooners, is considered one of the first actors to receive residual payments for her work. She is also believed to be the only cast member who earned residuals for reruns, including the show's star, Jackie Gleason. Meadows' contract with CBS included a residual clause that entitled her to payments when the show was rebroadcast. This clause was inserted into her contract by her brother Edward, a lawyer, and ended up earning her millions of dollars.
At the time, residuals and royalties were uncommon in television contracts as the industry was still relatively new. When Jackie Gleason signed a deal with CBS in the 1950s, it was the largest television contract in history, but he had to pay for all production costs himself, including his co-stars' salaries. It is believed that Meadows made around $2,000 per week for her work on The Honeymooners, while Joyce Randolph, another cast member, is thought to have earned about $500 per week.
Meadows' character, Alice, became strongly associated with her, and she reprised the role on other shows, including a man-on-the-street interview for The Steve Allen Show and a parody sketch on The Jack Benny Program. For her performance on The Honeymooners, Meadows received four Primetime Emmy nominations and won one for The Jackie Gleason Show.
In addition to her work on The Honeymooners, Meadows appeared in films such as That Touch of Mink and Take Her, She's Mine, and she portrayed Ted Knight's mother-in-law in the 1980s sitcom Too Close for Comfort. She also served as the director of the First National Bank of Denver for 11 years, becoming the first woman to hold the position.
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She was the live-action model for Wilma Flintstone
Audrey Meadows, the actress who played Alice Kramden in The Honeymooners, was an American actress born in New York City in 1922. She was the younger sister of Hollywood actress Jayne Meadows. After high school, Meadows performed in the Broadway musical Top Banana and later became a regular on television in The Bob and Ray Show. She was then hired to play Alice Kramden on The Jackie Gleason Show.
Meadows' portrayal of Alice Kramden in The Honeymooners is said to have inspired the personality of Wilma Flintstone in the animated series The Flintstones. Wilma Flintstone is a fictional character in the television animated series The Flintstones. She is married to Fred Flintstone and is the mother of Pebbles Flintstone. Her personality is based on that of Alice Kramden, who is married to Ralph Kramden in The Honeymooners. Like Alice, Wilma is strong-willed and level-headed, often bailing Fred out of trouble when his schemes go awry.
In 1994, a live-action film adaptation of The Flintstones was released, with Elizabeth Perkins portraying Wilma Flintstone. The film was a massive success, earning over one-third of a billion dollars and becoming the sixth-highest-grossing film of the year. The live-action model for Wilma Flintstone in the film was played by Elizabeth Perkins, who captured the character's essence and brought her to life on the big screen.
It is worth noting that while Wilma Flintstone's personality may have been inspired by Audrey Meadows' portrayal of Alice Kramden, the live-action model for Wilma in the 1994 film was not played by Meadows herself but by actress Elizabeth Perkins, bringing a fresh interpretation to the beloved character.
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Frequently asked questions
Audrey Meadows joined the cast of The Honeymooners in 1952, taking over the role of Alice Kramden from Pert Kelton.
Meadows joined the cast of The Honeymooners because she replaced Pert Kelton, who was ill.
Meadows played the role of Alice Kramden, the testy bus driver's wife.
Audrey Meadows received four Primetime Emmy nominations for her television work, including one for her work on The Honeymooners.
